2023 Locum Heroes Finalists

Meet The 6 Nominees

Every day, locum tenens providers provide critical healthcare services to patients in understaffed facilities and underserved communities. Many of these selfless medical professionals go above and beyond in their work and daily lives, so to properly celebrate and recognize the best of the best, we began our annual Locum Heroes campaign five years ago. Here are the six nominees chosen as 2023 Locum Heroes finalists, one of whom will be chosen as this year’s Barton Associates Locum Hero.

Sophia Khawly, Family Practice NP

Ms. Khawly is a nurse practitioner who, since 2003, has volunteered with the nonprofit organization Hope for Haiti’s Children (HFHC). A founding member of the nonprofit, she helps raise funds to support public schools in Haiti and leads medical outreach mission trips, which provide health care access to HFHC students and their families. Khawly, who has been a full-time locum tenens NP since 2015, is also the founder of TravelingNP.com, a blog that helps beginner locum tenens NPs get started.

Dr. Greta Smidt, DMD

Dr. Smidt is a locum tenens dentist who works in areas with underserved populations—in fact, a few of the places she’s worked in had no traffic lights and a caution light only. Smidt’s specialty is in dental prosthetics, and she often takes the time to teach dental assistants in these areas, most of whom are usually fresh out of high school.

Dr. Carolyn Lafleur, Anesthesiologist

Dr. Lafleur is an anesthesiologist who founded Medical Diplomats International, an organization with a mission to provide quality healthcare services to people who live in isolated mountain regions across the world. Dr. Lafleur conducts home visits as well as crucial breast cancer screenings in these remote locations.

Dr. Barbara Rumberger, Pediatric Hospitalist

Dr. Rumberger has been a volunteer pediatrician for Operation Smile since 2015, an organization that provides medical treatment for children with cleft lips and cleft palates across the world. In total, Dr. Rumberger has completed over 25 missions, changing lives one smile at a time. She also serves as a locum tenens healthcare provider in rural and underserved areas in the United States.

Dr. Alok Kumar Gupta, Primary Care

Dr. Gupta has 42 years of experience and has been working as a medical provider for years. In January 2023, Anekant Community Center (ACC) led a team of 22 people, including Dr. Gupta, on a journey to provide much needed healthcare to the underprivileged in 11 places in India, providing a wide variety of medical services.

Dr. Susan LaSala-Wood, Family Practice

Last June, Dr. LaSala-Wood started an assignment in New Mexico where she worked as a family nurse practitioner. While getting accustomed to the facility, she learned of the many difficulties it was facing and did not hesitate to step up and offer her management skills. Dr. LaSala-Wood helped save this facility from closing down by getting them up to date on protocols and helping them follow state and federal guidelines.

Learn More About Locum Heroes

Interested in learning more about the Locum Heroes contest? Click here for additional information about the nomination and selection process, as well as past winners.